Big Bone Lick

The Voss family enjoyed a trip to Big Bone Lick State Park in June.  Here is an excerpt of their visit:

Our first stop was at the trailside museum where they had life-size replicas of Wooly Mammoths, Mastodons, etc.  There were several geocaches and letterboxes in the park.  We hiked about 6 miles when all was said and done.

Big Bone Lick State Park has a herd of buffalo, which is part of the reason we decided to visit.  We were fortunate enough to be able to see several baby buffalo while we were there.  Too cute!

After a picnic lunch, we decided to venture up to the Coralberry Trail, which is a 2-mile hike around a small hilltop lake.  It really is beautiful there and so peaceful.

Here is part of a report (edited for clarity) by Shannon of her paddling trip down Big Bone Creek on May 15, 2010:

We put the kayak in the water somewhere along the southwest edge of Big Bone Lick State Park (off Boat Dock Road) at about 12:30 p.m.  Almost immediately we had to get out for the first of a half-dozen or so portages.  The last and worst portage was at the Bender Road bridge, as it was dammed up with debris from recent flooding.

If we were to do this again, we’d start at the Bender Road bridge, because after that, there were no obstructions, just a smooth lazy paddle with nice stretches of shade and sky.

We ended up at the boat ramp at Jane’s Saddlebag — what a GREAT place, with great food, and the proprietor, Nancy, is a fantastic lady.  The trip was about 4 miles, and it took us 2 hours, portages included.  Your mileage may vary.

Read Shannon’s full report at Paddling.net

Rod Burkert and his two sons, Ty and Buster, hiked “every inch” of the trails in Big Bone Lick State Park.  “One of the trails led us to a meadow of grazing American buffalo…  The buffalo is a curious animal, and our presence brought them closer and closer and closer…  A calf came over and licked my hand.”

Rod continued:  “We stayed at the campground in the state park – two duclaws up! The place was perched on a hill, giving panoramic views of the countryside.  For kids, there is a swimming pool and playground; showers, restrooms, and laundry facilities are also on site.”

Those of us who live near Big Bone Lick can surely appreciate what Rod has to say about the nightlife:  “The most memorable moment was being outside late at night, far removed from city lights, and gazing at the twinkling stars.  THIS is what traveling with our pets is all about!”

Read the article at GoPetFriendlyBlog.com

Carol Slater is an Indiana working mother of two girls.  She has written an article about Big Bone Lick State Park for Associated Content:

“A visit to Big Bone Lick State Park in Union, Kentucky is a great place to spend the day for any family.  The kids and adults will enjoy this park as it is a park filled with ancient history, a herd of buffalo, and plenty of activities for all family members.”

She goes on to talk about the museum, nature center, picnic facilities, campground and 7.5 acre lake for fishing.  She closes her article by saying:

“Plan your trip to this park today and you won’t regret it.  It is a fun day and a fun place to spend the day with the kids.  Take a walk to the buffalo herd and enjoy the day.  Remind yourself of what it would be like that if they still roamed free today in this area.”

Read the article

BonsaiHiker and his family took a day trip in August “to a nearby state park known for its concentration of large extinct mammals.  It also has a few that aren’t extinct yet.”

See their photo album

TheBassmaster95 posted a video on YouTube showing him fishing at Big Bone Lick State Park.  Here is his report:

“I guess fishing was just okay.  Not one of my good days though.  The bluegill in there are pretty small, as you can see.  The first time I went to Big Bone Lick State Park, I was catfishing.  Well, I thought the place was just abundant with catfish until I actually hooked what I thought to be a catfish.  It was a bluegill.  That was what had been biting my chicken liver.  So I decided to go bluegill fishing down there.  Like I said, it was a slow day.  I was using size 8 or 10 eagle claw salmon egg hooks.  They are a great hook for bluegill because they are so small.  Another good thing to have is a small bobber.  If you are fishing with a lot of bait stealers, you need to be able to detect those tiny bites that you can’t detect with a big bobber.  Some times your bobber may only be moving in a direction and you don’t even know that that is a fish biting.”

T. David had a chance to visit Big Bone Lick State Park and was pleasantly surprised to discover a herd of bison.  The bison are part of an effort to ensure their continued existence in the United States.  These magnificent beasts once ruled the prairie, but indiscriminate hunting reduced their numbers to less than 1000.  Through conservation efforts and "captive" herds, such as the one at Big Bone Lick State Park, bison are no longer an endangered species.

For more great bison photos, check out T. David’s collection of photos of “The Bison Bunch.”

Wim and Hanlie are two “very ordinary South Africans” who felt obliged to go traveling “so that we would have something to talk about.”  They wrote in their blog that they are currently camped at Big Bone Lick, Kentucky “and as I’m writing this it is storming like you can’t believe.  The new tent is holding out well, the lightning is making almost permanent light outside, the wind is blowing bubbles to all sides of the tent and the rain is pouring down like there’s no tomorrow.  We heard all our (unwashed) dishes being blown from the table outside but they’ll have to wait for the morning.  I wonder if the bikes have been blown over yet.”

Read about the rest of their trip

There were two blog postings about field trips to Big Bone Lick State Park. 

The first was Discovery School Days:  “We enjoyed a day with the park naturalist.  He led us in a fun lecture about the ice age that covered this part of KY.  The kids all took part in role playing saber-tooth tigers, sloths, mammoths, even ice moving across land…an excellent use of creative dramatics! “At lunch, Mrs. Rachel lit a fire and everyone roasted marshmallows.  Then we spent the afternoon learning survival skills that may have been used by American Indians in this area.  We learned flint napping, jewelry making, even how to start a fire using a bow and hearth… not by rubbing two sticks together!  It was a great day!!”

The second report was by Hoppy Hollow Farm: “We learned about the Ice Age and learned survival skills, including how to start a fire.  The naturalist was exceptional and we got all this for $3 a student. It was an incredible deal!!

Melissa is a homeschool mom to three beautiful children ages 12, 10, and 3.  They use Charlotte Mason’s educational philosophies of learning the natural, everyday hands-on life way.  They especially enjoy learning and growing together beyond the classroom doors in God’s amazing creation in nature.

On Wednesday they went on a very fun field trip with some of the other families from their co-op to Big Bone Lick State Park.  Their naturalist guide taught the kids three different sessions on bison, animal tracks, and survival in the wild.

Melissa was surprised to learn that bison are quite dangerous.  They do not like anyone or anything in their territory and will quickly charge to eliminate it.  And the fact that they can weigh up to a ton, run 40 mph (humans can’t run that fast, even Olympics competitors), and can leap over 6 feet, she wouldn’t want to get in their space.  Bison are primarily all muscle, and that is how they are so powerful.

 See more photos on Melissa’s blog